UCLA - Texas A&M Preview

West- Round Two
UCLA Bruins (1) Vs. Texas A&M Aggies (9)
Saturday, March 22 @ 9:15 pm

It was all over very quickly for Mississippi Valley State. The final outcome was UCLA 70 and MVS 29. The Bruins’ next opponent will be Texas A&M. That should be a bit closer than this one.

The team stats are resoundingly one-sided. UCLA shot 47% from the floor, 73% from the foul line and grabbed 50 rebounds. MVS shot 21%, 33% and took in 29 rebounds. UCLA hit 40% of its threes, while their opponents sank 7%. UCLA center Kevin Love had the big game, hitting for 20 points and handling 9 rebounds.

For the Aggies, victory was not earned so easily. Coming out of the locker room after halftime, Texas A&M and Brigham Young were tied at 29. With 4:39 left to play, it was a one-point game. The final was 67- 62.

In scoring, the teams were fairly evenly matched at the foul line. The major differences were from the field and the three-point line. From the field, Texas A&M shot 54% (25- 46), while BYU hit 44% (24- 54). The Aggies’ 50% grade from downtown resulted in 24 points, while the Cougars’ 32% equaled 21 points. The rebound war was also won by Texas A&M, 36- 23. But Texas A&M was plagued by turnovers, giving the ball up 13 times. BYU only turned it over 7.

The Aggies have to be concerned about a few things. First, they are playing UCLA. That’s a given. Second, the Bruins are well rested. Third, the Aggies cannot give up the ball on turnovers the way they did with the Cougars.

Swingman Josh Carter had a big game for the Aggies, hitting for 26 points and grabbing 5 rebounds. Forward/center Joseph Jones took down a dozen rebbies and knocked in 10 points for Texas A&M. Although Carter is a gamer and Jones up front is impressive, can Carter really match-up with the likes of the Bruins’ steady backcourt or the individual play of center Kevin Love? The road to the championship for the Aggies stops when they play UCLA.